Rising Humidity, Rip Currents, And Lightning Strikes…OH MY!

While the title of the blog sounds menacing (sorry), this blog is mostly about safety when rip currents and lightning happen. More on that in a moment. First let’s talk about the forecast.

We started off with a great morning. The sun was shining, humidity was still low, and temperatures were in the 60s and 70s. It was beautiful. However, I did notice some showers to our southeast and our southwest. They seemed to be starting to close-in.

Satellite/Radar

Yesterday we had the strong easterly breeze which kept things nice and cool and comfortable. Today the wind will be shifting more out of the southeast. It will run at about 5-10mph with a bit stronger breeze near the shore. Due to the wind-shift, temperatures will rise to the mid-upper 80s. Humidity will also be rising through the day. A warm front will move into the region as well. This will aid in warming the temperatures.

Today’s Forecast

The front may spark a few isolated showers and thunderstorms this afternoon. It won’t be a high chance, but here is the general outline of where I expect those few showers:

Today’s Rain Chances

We may have to extend it north just a bit during the midday update.

Tomorrow and Thursday we’ll be on the warmer side of the front. Highs will be in the upper 80s to low 90s. Humidity will be up. We’ll see scattered showers and storms each afternoon. However, the models are still very indecisive about rain chances for the weekend. For now I have a chance, but not a high one, for each day. Stay tuned. There will be changes.

Ok…now let’s talk about the other two topics. We had some water rescues at the beaches yesterday. Life guards put up red flags as the waters were very choppy. This was due to the strong easterly winds over the ocean. Even though the winds are shifting, the waves are still up a bit today. There is a moderate threat for rip currents, and there may be be a high threat. So use caution if you are swimming. Some of the lifeguards may not let you get into the water above your thighs. If you do swim away from a lifeguard, then use a lot of caution. Also, keep a close on the kids playing in the water. Remember, a rip current is a fast moving stream of water that will push a swimmer or object out away from the beach. It may or may not be seen from the beach or even in the water. If the water pushes you out, then swim parallel to the shore. Then swim back in where the current is weaker.

On top of that, this is lightning safety week. A friend of mine on facebook posted this great link to another NOAA site. It talks about the different ways that people can be struck by lightning. It was the best explanation of this topic that I have ever seen. Granted the pictures are a bit cartoony, but they are a great visual aid which is kid-friendly. There are 5 different types of strikes described in the article.

Here is the link: Lightning Strikes. Lightning kills an average of 51 people per year. The best thing you can do during a thunderstorm is to get indoors. If you don’t have a good shelter, then you can also see safety in your vehicle. Be safe out there. We will see thunderstorms back in the forecast this week.